Avalanche stars lead the way as a new Stanley Cup journey begins
Oct 11, 2023, 11:11 PM | Updated: Oct 12, 2023, 9:39 am
The 2023-24 Colorado Avalanche season is off and running, and the Avs have secured their first two points.
Colorado beat Los Angeles 5-2 on the road Wednesday night, moving to 1-0-0 to commence a brand new campaign. In a year that once again has Stanley Cup aspirations, it was a solid start.
The stars showed up in a big way, as Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen scored early to give the Avalanche a 3-0 lead in the second period. All three goals were pretty — each one a snipe that beat Kings goalie Cam Talbot clean. Los Angeles rallied to make it 3-2 at the second intermission.
In the third, Rantanen added his second goal of the night, this one on an unbelievable tip-in after a shot at the point from defenseman Jack Johnson. Goalie Alexandar Georgiev did his part the rest of the way, posting 35 saves, including several tough ones. The Avs added an empty-netter from Miles Wood.
Rantanen tallied four points, adding two assists to go along with his two goals. MacKinnon finished with three points and Makar with two.
And picking up an assist on the MacKinnon goal was his former teammate with the Halifax Mooseheads, Jonathan Drouin. The two skated together more than a decade ago before MacKinnon went No. 1 overall in the 2013 NHL Draft and Drouin No. 3. Their careers have gone in different directions, but it looks like Drouin is already thrilled to be reunited with MacKinnon.
Next up for Colorado is two more games on the road against the Sharks and the Kraken, before the home opener on Oct. 18 versus the Blackhawks. The Avalanche will look for a little revenge against Seattle, the team that ousted them in Round 1 while attempting to defend their Cup.
It’s going to be a long journey, but it’s off to a nice beginning. And that’s all you can ask for one game in.
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